Floyd Mayweather's latest run-in with law puts even more distance between him, Manny Pacquiao

AP PhotoFloyd Mayweather, center, leaves the Clark County Detention Center in Las Vegas after posting bail on a grand larceny charge stemming from a domestic violence complaint filed by the mother of three of his four children.

Floyd Mayweather has found himself on the wrong end of some court cases that have left him vilified by many in the realm of sports fans and media. So it is peculiar that, of all things, the thing that might abruptly short-circuit his boxing career and reputation is the alleged pilfering of a cell phone.

Mayweather, who was released on $3,000 bond, faces the felony charge because the iPhone was valued at more than $250, according to police spokesman Bill Cassell.

Strange? Yes.

A sign that Las Vegas authorities might be a bit tired of Mayweather's frequent run-ins with them? Probably.

Think Mayweather might wish he had entertained the thought of fighting Manny Pacquiao in November, in which case he would have been training for the biggest potential fight in the sport rather than bickering with his ex-girlfriend at 5:03 a.m. Thursday, when she called police?

Almost certainly.

That proposed fight faces even more extreme jeopardy now. Representatives for Pacquiao, the Filipino congressman, have expressed reservation previously about placing his reputation in the vicinity of Mayweather's. They actively have pursued the fight since then, although their reaction to this newest news remains to be seen.

Ross Greenburg, HBO Sports president, told the Los Angeles Times that people are "repelled by Mayweather's personality. I hope he can learn from these terrible mistakes. Someone has to do an intervention with him."

A cell phone.

Petty? Maybe. A defense attorney might argue that a cell phone received as part of a calling plan couldn't possibly be worth $250 while trying to counter a prosecutor whose basic responsibility would be to assure that Mayweather got punished for taking it regardless of worth.

More important are Mayweather's previous legal issues and how they affect this latest incident and what's left of the Grand Rapids native's boxing career.

The authorities went after him before, a prosecutor-turned-judge securing the kind of plea bargain that assured any future third conviction for domestic battery would land Mayweather in a Nevada prison. Mayweather was acquitted of such a charge in 2005, his accuser recanting her initial story on the stand, leaving prosecutors without a case -- the same woman, that is, whose phone Mayweather allegedly stole.

He has the four assault convictions, all misdemeanors, but none before he vaulted into eight-figure purses and became the highest-earning boxer -- and one of the highest-earning athletes -- in the world.

They occurred before Arturo Gatti, before Oscar De La Hoya, before Ricky Hatton. Before "Dancing With the Stars" and WrestleMania.

They occurred before most mainstream sports fans felt obliged to remember anything about Mayweather.

But Mayweather has crossed over, so the tales resurrect amid this new allegation that he punched Harris and twisted her arm, then threatened their three children if they took intervening action after the mother told them to call 911. Harris is seeking a protective order against Mayweather.

There also remains the recent memory of a known Mayweather associate, Ocie Harris, allegedly pumping a half-dozen shots into a car carrying two men with whom the boxer had argued, outside a Las Vegas skating rink. Mayweather's home and Rolls-Royce were searched, but he never was implicated. Harris faces trial on attempted murder.

So this is where it leads, to some scenario where a man enters the home of his children's mother, argues, allegedly assaults her, allegedly takes her cell phone and now faces a major legal issue that threatens the biggest windfall in boxing history, at the very least.

Police couldn't arrest Mayweather for domestic battery, under Nevada law, more than 24 hours after the alleged incident. Prosecutors can take up that case if they choose.

Meantime, a cell phone has prompted a felony charge against one of the most prominent athletes in the world.

If the only man his size who could beat Floyd Mayweather is Floyd Mayweather, and he really launched this assault against his own carefully crafted empire, something never seen in one of his fights might have happened: the other guy winning.